HOCKEY BETTING 101

There are a few ways to place a bet on a hockey game. By far the most common way to wager on hockey is the moneyline. Another is to bet on the total and the third is on the puck line. All three are valid and no one way is better than the other. The real trick or rather art it to find the best value on the boards.

The thing about hockey is that it can go the other way real quick. A funny bounce a deflection off a defenseman and we can be looking at a whole new game. The Goaltender is such a big piece of the puzzle you can liken him to a quarterback. If he is off his game or gets injured and taken out the teams ability to win the game drastically reduced and in some cases eliminated altogether.

Lets examine the moneyline. NEVER ok well almost never play on favorites over -140 certainly think more than once on laying your money down on a -160 favorite and if a Handicapper tells you to play the -180 or better favorite I would take a solid second look at this handicapper and his claims methods and details of his records. At -200 simple chuckle to yourself and walk away.

Lets get serious. My dog could pick a -200 or better winner but whats worse is that this not what sports investing and handicapping is all about. There is no value in this play and the risk is simply not justified and as I said you dont need me or any other handicapper to tell you to play such a heavy favorite. No our job is to find the -105 to -125 favorites that should be -125 to -175 favorites and jump all over those games or better yet find the dogs that should be favorites. Now THAT my friends is what professional handicapping is all about.

For the new and initiate When you bet on the moneyline you are betting on the result of a game who will win. there is no pointspread so in a Tampa Bay - Atlanta game where the moneyline on Tampa is -125 and you want to bet on Tampa the favorite in this meeting they you must wager 125$ to win 100. Atlanta being the underdog would have a positive moneyline and in this case most likely would be +115. To bet on Atlanta for every 100$ you bet you win 115. The reason for the difference between the favorite and the dog as in why its not -125 and +125 is the subject of many other articles but it is basically the cut the sportsbook makes as their profit on the action this game may generate. ANyway. if the finak score is Tampa 3 - Atlanta 2 then all those who bet on Tampa would win their bets and those who bet on atlanta should have asked me and I would have put them on Tampa -

The next method is the total. It is the same as betting on totals in any sport. the average total for most games is 5.5 to 6.5. occassionally you see a 5 or a 7 but not often. BTW I play the UNDER on a total of 7 nine times out of ten. That is a really big number in hockey. The value in this is a bit harder to find or I should say not as obvious. The bet is usually around -110 or so. occassionally you see a total with a +105 for the betting action so no big surprises there and it is a solid and safe way to bet on hockey. It may be just me but I also find it a tad bit harder to like the totals. Hockey or at least to a person born and raised on hockey is a 3-2 or 4-3 game. See how nicely 6 fits inth the middle of that! Now dont get me wrong I do play totals just not as often and there certainly can be some good values and little gems in totals so we study them as vigerously as the moneylines.

Now we get to the puck line. This is represented as 1.5 and -1.5 . What you are doing is getting a goal and a half or giving up a goal and a half. Its sorta kinda like a pont spread. This is the make or break point. This is what seperates the Professionals from the Amatures. This is not to be taken lightly and is the bet i play the least. As with moneylines you do not need anybody to tell you to take a team on the puckline at for example at 1.5 / -240. Basically they are taking a slight dog a game where the books fully expect the score to be 3-2 and the moneyline on that same team would be around +110 and the favorite would be at -120. This is such a HUGE risk and the gain is so slight why the hell bother? Bet $240 to win $100? If your a $100 bettor what would you make. 41 bucks? Christ go mow a couple lawns in the neighbourhood you could make the same 41 bucks in about the time it takes the game to be played and you would get some exercise. What you are looking for is a 1.5 / + 150 . When a bigger dog is played on a pk line there can be some value to be found and it lightens the load. If you have the inside track and see something the books missed and there is a 1.5 / 135 for example especially on a team who you think should either be a slight dog and perhaps even the favorite the BINGO we not only have a good value but man i sleep better at night with the extra insurance the +1.5 gives me. This is not sports gambling it is sports betting. When I wanna gamble you will find me at the Del Rey or the Colonial sitting at the Roulette Table. Now do not get me wrong there are times a pk line + or - 1.5 can be played at -115 or +300 but you have to take a closer look at these and make sure you know this to be the best value that game represents otherwise why are you on it?

As a Professional Sports Handicapper I am responsible to the people who buy my plays and my subscription. It is not my job to pick easy winners. They can do that for themselves. It is my job to make them money by finding true value plays not expect them to risk it all to make up some ground and to offer a solid ROI. This is a business and should not be treated and a part time gig played with a dart board or a one that requires you to state the obvious and pick the -350 favorite. When you are looking at purchasing the services of any handicapper in any sport. Do your research. Check not only ther records but what sort of game and types of bets these records represent. Is he a guy who plays all dogs is he an action junkie does he play only the heavy favorites? Is this his full time job or is he guy who likes sports has a full time job during the day and has decided to make some money as a hobbie.

I am a member of the Professional Handicappers League and all my records are open to scrutiny. I am also the Leagues top NHL Handicapper and not by just a small margin but by more than double the units of the next nearest handicapper. If you have any questions about me or any handicapper feel free to email service@procappers.com or call 1.702.851.0958 I am also offering my NHL rest of Season and Playoffs Subscription for just 175. My daily packages are $35. This subscription represents a HUGE savings and the best value anywhere!

I would say good luck but I am not a leprochaun and luck is not my business. My business is winning and business is good!